Groundbreaking for senior housing apartments by the Village Green is expected in mid-July. The long-anticipated first step took place on April 18, when Kitsap County completed sale of the property to the partnership that will carry out the project: Village Green Kingston Associates, which includes Martha & Mary.
Over the next 18 months, plenty of more observable changes will also occur, culminating in opening of 35 affordable senior housing apartments at the Village Green. With a little good fortune, the building of our community center will not be far behind!As construction progresses, you will also notice a few other changes, from tennis courts to pea patch.
As ownership of the remaining Village Green property will transfer to our local Metropolitan Park District (MPD), we have crafted agreements with Kingston Associates representatives to both protect the public and serve public interests. For example, the MPD will now own the tennis courts at the Village Green. Lengthy deliberation produced an arrangement whereby the tennis courts will be open during most of the construction, but will have to be closed during short periods — say, because there is risk of falling debris. To close the tennis courts, the existing fence must be closable — there’s not presently a door or gate there — and we will have to move the entrance from its present location to West Kingston Road.
If you know people who currently use the courts, please encourage them to visit the MPD site at www.myvillagegreen.org so that we can be contacted for more information.
It’s also possible that our heavily used Village Green park may experience brief intermittent access limitations because of the construction. We are committed to keeping the park usable to the greatest extent possible and to keeping the community informed in advance about the impact of construction on park access.
The plans to locate a pea-patch garden at the Village Green are likewise acknowledged in the agreement with the housing development’s contractor. Contact garden@kingstonvillagegreen.org for more information on the pea-patch.
Keep your eyes peeled and your ear to the ground for more Village Green news!
— Submitted by Village Green Metropolitan Park District commissioners
